checkable

American  

[chek-uh-buhl] / ˈtʃɛk ə bəl /

adjective

1. capable of being checked, as by inquiry or verification.

   The fact is checkable from available records.

2. (of money deposited in a bank) capable of being withdrawn by bank check.

   a checkable account.

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Other Word Forms

• checkability noun
• uncheckable adjective

Etymology

Origin of checkable

First recorded in 1875–80; check ¹ + -able

Explanation

If something presented as a fact is checkable, someone can confirm that it’s really true or correct by doing some research. Those dates and events you used in your history essay are checkable, so hopefully you didn’t make them up! To check something is to verify it to make sure it’s true or correct. So checkable can mean "able to be verified," like the college degrees and work experiences listed on someone’s resume. If the details in a report are not checkable, you may have to take them on trust! But a check is also the little paper form you can fill out to pay someone with money from your bank account. So a checkable account is one you can write checks on.

Example Sentences

When a customer metes out a thumbs-down, a list of checkable options pops up, including such vague choices as “driver did not follow my delivery instructions” and “driver was unprofessional” that don’t require any substantiation.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 26, 2023

And use a central, instantly checkable database so the certificates can’t be forged.

From Washington Post • Feb. 2, 2021

“Why would you lie to your readers about such an easily checkable issue?”

From Fox News • Sep. 10, 2019

Where her memory was unclear, she pointed to checkable information—Judge’s employment dates at Safeway, her location in a Walgreens parking lot during phone calls—to nail down where and when things happened.

From Slate • Sep. 27, 2018

Very little provision is made for hand luggage, the American custom being to "check" anything checkable and have it put in the "baggage car."

From The Land of Contrasts A Briton's View of His American Kin by Muirhead, James F. (James Fullarton)